Reckoning
by JustAnotherCrazyWriter
Summary: 'Finn is halfway to Carmel High before he realises what he's doing.' Finn hates Jesse for the shell of the girl he left behind. F/R & J/R. Post-Funk somewhere.


**This was heavily influenced by Lost 1x08: "Confidence Man". I hope you like it! It was also a fill for the 7 deadly sins meme going around LiveJournal, this was written for 'pride'. **

* * *

_reckoning_

_#  
_

Finn is halfway to Carmel High before he realises what he's doing. Maybe this is what he had always planned, when he started driving to Akron. Or even just when he catches Rachel hastily wiping away tears shed for _another guy_. It isn't fair. Finn holds her, listens to her (yeah, really listens, not just pretending to), sings with her, _loves_ her. But still, every now and then, she'll get this far away look in her eyes, and he knows she's imagining _what could have been_.

And even now, she stumbles into his chest, his arms coming around her body as she cries.

Finn hates Jesse for the shell of the girl he left behind.

(But he would be lying if he said he isn't grateful that he has the chance to pick up the pieces.)

* * *

Jesse tosses the black sports bag into the back of the car, slamming the heavy door and swinging his keys around his fingers as he makes his way to the driver's side. Out of the corner of his eye, he sees a figure park his car haphazardly, before climbing out and striding over towards him.

It's Finn.

He just processes it, and hesitates to get in the car, instead only turning around at the sound of the other boy's voice.

"Hey!"

Jesse has the decency to look surprised, before Finn's fist suddenly obscures his vision and-

* * *

Finn sinks a fist into Jesse St. James' face.

Jesse's head snaps back, and he staggers back a step; when he rights himself, he's holding the back of his hand to the corner of his mouth, checking for blood. And he's not quite _smirking_, but there's some hard glint in his eyes, the blaze of annoyance being dulled by the way Jesse's looking at Finn, like he _wants_ a fight.

So he stops, not noticing until now that he's breathing hard.

"Leave her alone." Finn's voice is like poison, dripping with contempt. He doesn't know what Jesse said to her, but he doesn't care, and _no one_ hurts his girl.

"Yeah?" Jesse steps forward, and cocks his head to one side. "And what if I don't?"

A flash of anger, and Finn's punching Jesse again, this time catching his jaw in a way that makes a satisfying _smack_ against skin, and Jesse's flying back, hands catching himself just before he hits the pavement.

"You want to say that again?" Finn's hands are shaking, and he's not sure if its from rage or adrenaline, or maybe a bit of both.

Jesse stands up, staggering a little but recovering quickly. He spits out blood onto the concrete, and when his eyes connect with Finn's again, they're full of that stubborn arrogance, like he _wants_ to be hit again. "Is that all you got?" he mocks.

Finn's fingers twitch where he's dropped his hands beside him, but he stops, shaking his head. "What is your problem?"

"Is there a point to this conversation?" Jesse's face is now a mask of boredom, let down only by the hastily-smothered flame of frustration in his eyes, and shining blood just visible in his nose.

Finn's startled by his abrupt change in demeanour, before letting out a sigh. He almost admires his acting (because yes, he knows this is acting, even if he doesn't always seem that observant). "No," he says quietly, as if just realising.

"Well, if you're quite done, then," Jesse says in a clipped, sarcastic tone, half-turning away.

That anger rises up in him again, like sick, and Finn's pinning Jesse against his car with a grip on his shirt. He catches a flicker of apprehension in Jesse's eyes, before the older boy blinks, a slow smirk starting to spread across his face. For that, Finn slams Jesse into the metal again.

"Don't you go near her again. Don't talk to her. Don't touch her. Don't breathe in the same room as she's in." Finn pushes away from the black Range Rover. "Stay away from us."

With that, he stalks back to his car and drives out of the parking lot, not daring to turn around until he's on the highway and speeding back to Lima.

* * *

**Review? (:**


End file.
